From NPR.com: In recent years, some lawmakers and gun control groups have pushed
for a national database that would record the ballistics signature of
every gun sold in the United States. But a new report from a
prestigious scientific panel says it's probably not a good idea.

The
series of deadly sniper shootings in the Washington, D.C., area in
October 2002 inspired some lawmakers to start thinking about a national
database.

By comparing bullets taken from the victims,
investigators knew that the shootings were linked. But to what gun?
Whose gun? Police couldn't tell. The federal government does have a
database of markings on bullets that police can search, but it includes
only guns that have been already used in a crime.

That led some
lawmakers to wonder whether the unique markings left by all guns should
be recorded — whether the guns should be fired and their ballistic
signatures noted before they were sold. That way, if the guns were ever
used in crimes, investigators could trace them.

But it wasn't
clear if the technology was ready. So the Department of Justice took
the problem to the National Research Council, which gives the
government independent advice on science issues. A panel spent four
years looking at the idea.

The panel's verdict? "At this time,
it really is not feasible," says John Rolph, who chaired the panel.
Rolph is a statistician from the University of Southern California. Listen. . . [Mark Godsey]